Economic Outlook: Policing terra digitalis

FCC adopts net neutrality rules
Federal Regulators have issued new rules that ultimately will affect how Americans access videos over the Internet and how carriers charge for content. The 3-2 vote by the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday strikes a balance between Silicon Valley content creators, who use digital networks to deliver their virtual wares, and the cable and telephone companies that want to sell their own content and services to customers in addition to hooking them up to the World Wide Web. The new rul...

FCC adopts net neutrality rules
Federal Regulators have issued new rules that ultimately will affect how Americans access videos over the Internet and how carriers charge for content. The 3-2 vote by the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday strikes a balance between Silicon Valley content creators, who use digital networks to deliver their virtual wares, and the cable and telephone companies that want to sell their own content and services to customers in addition to hooking them up to the World Wide Web. The new rul...

Al Franken: The Internet as We Know it Is Still at Risk
In today's Net Neutrality action by the Federal Communications Commission there's good news and bad news. The good news is that, thanks to Commissioners Copps and Clyburn -- not to mention a nationwide network of Net Neutrality Activists -- the proposal approved today is better than the original circulated by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski. For instance, the FCC has now stated that it does not condone discriminatory behavior by wireless companies like Verizon and AT&T; -- an important piece th...

Why we should be worried about "net neutrality"
The FCC's decision yesterday to grab for itself the power to regulate the Internet through so-called "Net Neutrality" rules is the latest grab for Federal Government power over private industry. There wasn't any big demand for such Regulation. The Internet has grown from the small source it was in the beginning to be the wonderful source that it is today through private companies investing and competing with each other. But that isn't good enough for the Democrats on the FCC. They want more cont...

Obama and FCC approve net neutrality rules that mirror those in China and Iran
WASHINGTON - Yesterday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) gave Internet providers AT&T, Comcast and Verizon an early holiday present.  In a 3-2 vote, President Obama’s FCC signed a “Compromise” that ended the Internet’s Democracy and openness by selling it out to corporations, which will eventually result in a gated U.S. Internet system that rivals those in China or Iran.  However, these new rules are already being spun by the Obama administr...

'Net neutrality': ObamaCare for the Web
Michelle Malkin When Bureaucrats talk about increas ing our "access" to x, y or z, what they're really talking about is in creasing exponentially their control over our lives. As with the government Health Care takeover, so with the newly approved government plan to "increase" Internet "access." Call it Webcare. By a vote of 3-2, the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday adopted a Controversial scheme to ensure "Net Neutrality" by turning unaccountable Democratic appointees into meddli...

Net Neutrality
But what is known is that today’s developments will have far-reaching effects. Good or bad? Hard to say. It’s very difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff on this issue, since all sides seem to have compelling arguments to make. Our readers know that we subscribe to the general principle that “that government is best which governs least” (or, as Doug Casey would contend, “governs not at all”). And this would seem to be especially true with regard to the...

FCC Ignores Net Neutrality Ruling
When Julius Genachowski’s FCC board voted to regulate the Internet, it did so without regard for a Federal Court’s ruling that the FCC didn’t have the authority to regulate the internet . Here’s what the AP is reporting on the FCC’s attempted powergrab: A federal court threw the future of Internet regulations and U.S. Broadband expansion plans into doubt Tuesday with a far-reaching decision that went against the Federal Communications Commission. The U.S. Court of...

FCC adopts net neutrality rules
Federal Regulators have issued new rules that ultimately will affect how Americans access videos over the Internet and how carriers charge for content. The 3-2 vote by the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday strikes a balance between Silicon Valley content creators, who use digital networks to deliver their virtual wares, and the cable and telephone companies that want to sell their own content and services to customers in addition to hooking them up to the World Wide Web. The new rul...

Obamas FCC: Move aside, peasants, were in charge [Darleen Click]
John Fund points out this is just the beginning The Net Neutrality vision for government Regulation of the Internet began with the work of Robert McChesney, a University of Illinois communications Professor who founded the liberal lobby Free Press in 2002. Mr. McChesney’s agenda? “At the moment, the battle over network neutrality is not to completely eliminate the telephone and cable companies,” he told the website SocialistProject in 2009. “But the ultimate goal is to ...

The FCC Pleases No One
On Tuesday, the Federal Communications Commission voted to approve new rules for "Net Neutrality." And as a Compromise between net neutrality Activists, Conservatives and telecommunication companies, the rules don't seem to satisfy anyone. For wired Internet, the new rules maintain the status quo. Cable and DSL providers can't meter your internet access, and have to let you use the applications, online services, and devices you want, regardless of how they affect the network. Verizon...

They're Calling It Net Neutrality, But It Isn't
It's no exaggeration to say that this decision marks the beginning of the end for the Internet as we know it. Senator Al Franken laid out what's at stake with this ruling, saying: "The FCC's action today is simply inadequate to protect consumers or preserve the free and open Internet. I am particularly disappointed to learn that the order will not specifically ban paid prioritization, allowing big companies to pay for a fast lane on the Internet and abandoning the foundation of net neutralit...

Will the FCC Net Neutrality become that Catalyst for American Civil War?
I both rejoice and am deeply saddened at the brink of Civil Unrest that this lameduck session has brought the Country to. I rejoice that my fellow citizens have drawn a line in the sand and have awakened to the Python of Tyranny slowly tightening its grip on we the people. I rejoice that my fellow citizens recognize the Edward Bernays Propaganda style of misrepresenation.  Our Elected officials call a bill that something that appears to be helpful or at least harmless... But my fellow Count...

They're Calling It Net Neutrality, But It Isn't
It's no exaggeration to say that this decision marks the beginning of the end for the Internet as we know it. Senator Al Franken laid out what's at stake with this ruling, saying: "The FCC's action today is simply inadequate to protect consumers or preserve the free and open Internet. I am particularly disappointed to learn that the order will not specifically ban paid prioritization, allowing big companies to pay for a fast lane on the Internet and abandoning the foundation of net neutralit...

Analysis: Europe seen needing regulation on Internet access
By Georgina Prodhan and Nicola Leske LONDON | Wed Dec 22, 2010 9:58am EST LONDON (Reuters) - Europe's confidence that it need not follow the United States in adopting rules to ensure fair Internet access may be short-lived, as competition between mobile operators and service providers like Skype intensifies. A debate over Net Neutrality -- the principle that all Internet Traffic be treated equally -- has been heating up in the United States for years but has so far generated little public con...

Former Googler leaving White House (Politico)
Andrew McLaughlin, who for the past year has handled Internet policy issues in the White House, is resigning to launch two start-ups. McLaughlin was Google’s head of global Public Policy before assuming the role of Deputy Chief Technology Officer in the White House, working on a number of high-level Internet issues, such as Net Neutrality, cybersecurity, online Privacy and the nation’s Broadband strategy. Before joining the White House, he worked on Obama’s transition team. M...

Net Neutrality Vote: Twitter Users As Divided As FCC
On Tuesday, the FCC voted to adopt a framework that aims to preserve an "open Internet" by prohibiting Internet service providers from discriminating in how they handle information traveling over their networks. "The rules," according to the AP, "require Broadband providers to let subscribers access all legal online content, applications and services over their wired networks -- including online calling services, Internet video and other Web applications that compete with their core businesse...

The Real Story behind Net Neutrality
I hesitated about writing about Net Neutrality. It seemed to be covered by everyone. However, this is nothing less than shocking. I urge everyone to read the expose in its entirety. Click on the Wall Street Journal link embedded in the story. Behind the innocent-sounding name and expressed aims of the FCC’s Net Neutrality initiative, voted in by the Commission yesterday by a 3-2 partisan vote, is a very sinister leftist agenda. John Fund of the Wall Street Journal has done excellent work r...

GOP lawmakers threaten to repeal Net neutrality
Source: Politico Less than an hour after the Federal Communications Commission approved Net Neutrality rules, Republican lawmakers began staking their claim in the next potential leg of the debate: Repeal. The first calls to roll back the FCC's new Net Neutrality order came Tuesday from the House's most senior Republicans: House GOP Leader John Boehner of Ohio and Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia, as well as the incoming leaders of the chamber's top tech and telecom committees. The members each thre...

Open Thread and Diary Rescue
Tonight's Rescue Rangers are Alfonso Nevarez, ItsJessMe, rexymeteorite, sunspark says, grog, and vcmvo2 as reader and editor. The diaries up for rescue are: Taking a slightly different approach than most of us professional lefties take on the subject, Tom Joad and his Traveling Road Show asks What's wrong with an Activist Court? (grog) Rimjob reports on the state of our roads in Which Cities Have the Worst Roads & Traffic? (vcmvo2) "If network neutrality were a Health Care plan, it would si...

Malkin Op-Ed: 'Net Neutrality' - Obamacare for the Web
When Bureaucrats talk about increas ing our "access" to x, y or z, what they're really talking about is in creasing exponentially their control over our lives. As with the government Health Care takeover, so with the newly approved government plan to "increase" Internet "access." Call it Webcare. By a vote of 3-2, the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday adopted a Controversial scheme to ensure "Net Neutrality" by turning unaccountable Democratic appointees into meddling online traffic c...

The FCC, Net Neutrality and You
How is one to make sense of the FCC’s big vote Tuesday? Does it represent a gain for the net-neutrality cause, or is the corporate takeover of the Web upon us in earnest? Well, one thing seems certain: Nobody is all that happy with the outcome—except, that is, for some Lobbyists. —KA Tuesday’s FCC vote on rules purportedly designed to ensure open and free networks was a 3-2 partisan charade, with Genachowski and the other two Democratic commissioners in favor and the two ...

Net neutrality goes to a vote at the FCC
Obama Flip Flop: FCC Vote Could End Net Neutrality - Democracy NOW! 5 Tech Things #67: FCC Compromising Net Neutrality? ...

Wednesday News Net (Non)Neutrality Edition
Good Morning Conflucians!! Big news this week is the FCC ruling on Net Neutrality or in this case, the lack of net neutrality. Yet another case of Obama handing over what is the people’s to the few rich and powerful. But before we get to that, another cowardly Obama move deserves notice. Namely how the administration is preparing for their own indefinite dentition order for “Terrorists”: The Obama Administration is preparing an Executive Order that would formalize indefinite ...

Last Call: Short And Sweet
The FCC adopts Net Neutrality, which ensures that all data packets are treated equal. A Food Safety bill has passed the House and Senate, and will be the greatest overhaul of the regulations since 1983. While drawing some criticism for the government involvement, this was long overdue. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix cut ties with St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center after they performed a surgery that terminated a Pregnancy to save the patient's life. A third actor has been injured ...